Choctaw hires new band director, associate band director

Monday

FORT WALTON BEACH — The next chapter in the Choctawhatchee High School award-winning band program has begun.

Monday morning, principal Cindy Gates announced that the school had hired both a new band director and a new associate band director.

Native Mississippian Jay McArthur will take over as director, and recent Florida State University graduate Brad Parks will serve as associate director.

“(McArthur) brings a lot of experience and credibility and stability to the program,” Gates said.

“(Parks) is first and foremost a music educator, and when someone tells me they’re going to start in the classroom, that’s the right answer.”

Gates and a hiring committee began conducting interviews for the positions Friday and said at the time that they wanted to find someone for the position as soon as possible without compromising quality.

“We wouldn’t be sitting here today if I had not found the right two people,” Gates said as she sat in the band room Monday morning with the new leadership team. “They both came out on top in the interview process at the end of the day.”

The announcement comes less than a month after former band director Chad Hannah announced he’d be leaving for personal reasons. Associate director Kelly Deklinski had previously turned in her resignation to accept a job elsewhere.

Deklinski, who helped select the new leadership team and is trying to show them about the program before her contract ends June 30, said she felt good about leaving the program in their hands.

“I feel confident in both of these guys,” she said.

Both men expressed excitement about joining the well-known program and said neither hesitated to apply when they learned about the openings.

“I knew this is where I wanted to be and I had the opportunity to take advantage of that,” said Parks, who competed against Choctaw as a band student at West Boca Raton High School.

McArthur said he’s been familiar with Choctaw’s band program for more than 20 years and even though leaving Mississippi was hard, he’s looking forward to the new challenge.

“I am aiming at keeping the kids excited about music,” McArthur said. “Right now what we’d like to do is start shaking hands with the kids.”

Prior to arriving at Choctaw, McArthur spent the last 11 years establishing and building a band program. In that time, his former school brought home two state championships and superior ratings.

He said he is as passionate about the concert band as the marching band and will focus on creating not just lovers of music but leaders of music.

McArthur said they are holding a meeting with students and parents at 7 p.m. June 25 to discuss both the band camp schedule and the future of the program.

One thing was certain, though, even on Monday. The elaborate headdresses the marching band is known for will not go away under the new leadership.

“I don’t see any reason to fix anything that isn’t broken,” McArthur said with a smile.